A Crafty Little Blog

Archive for the ‘Hand Dyeing’ Category

Yes, it’s that time again. We finish one swap and the next one starts.

I signed up for two swaps again. I wanted to go all out, but believe it or not, I held back this time. I was trying not to make my packages so OTT, as it’s easy for me to get carried very far away!

The first one I did is based on the Kings of Leon song Sex on Fire. My person mentioned lots of things she would like, but the only thing that hit me was that she currently liked listening to Kings of Leon. That could well be because they have also caught my fancy of late. Sex on Fire is actually my ring-tone at the moment, so I get to hear it every so often, and then get to sing it in my head on repeat for hours after that. Much better than the In The Night Garden theme song any day.

So I got stuck into figuring out what to add. I was thinking the theme might be a tad mature, but then I found a sock pattern called, Socks on Fire! Oh my freaking goodness!!! So, that cinched it for me.

The yarn I dyed is 100g Paton’s Patonyle, originally a caramel colour. It’s dyed with Dylon in shades of pinks and red, which are the colours that come to mind when I think of the theme. I would have added some orange as well, but my swappee isn’t into orange, so stuck with just the shades of reds and pinks.

The “piece of paperwork” for the swap was the drink recipe which is actually called Sex on Fire!

It was all just meant to be!

And to top it off, because I am a dork and only dyed 100g of wool, instead of the 150g minimum, I added in a Schoc Chocolate bar in Chili Flavour. I had a taste sample at the Schoc store, and it is sure to spice up any one’s life.

The next one has to be some of the best, yet morbid fun I’ve had in a long time. My swapper said in her notes that she likes a good blood splatter thriller book. In particular, she was into the Scarletta series by Patricia Cornwell. A bit of googling, and I came up with “Death By Knitting.”

I had a crime scene. (100g patonyle dyed in deeps reds and black.)

Blood splatter disguised as sock stitch markers on a noose.

A manual on murder disguised as literature, Died In the Wool, by Mary Kruger, bagged and tagged as evidence.

The motive! Who wouldn’t kill for some Schoc Chocolate!

Informant information on Broken Cables, along with some other pieces of information like a police report and death certificate.

More crime scene pictures (gotta love Google), plus a recipe for Death By Chocolate.

And all of it, packed away in a Case File.

That was so much fun!

I received two in return. The first one came before the deadline and got me in a panic. But what a lovely parcel, all tied up in string.

The first was was titled *Strawberries.* YUM!

It was 200g of Merino et Soie, dyed with Ashfords Hot Pink and Scarlet coloured acid dyes. (My swapper even had an extra 300g that I bought off her as I LOVE this colour.) She sent a strawberry coffee cup (yes, I love my cup of joe!), and a strawberry huller which is a kitchen gadget I didn’t have. Perfecto! The recipe is for Pam’s Scarlet Strawberry Cordial which is a family recipe. And the pattern picked is Strawberry Hill by Melissa Matthay.

This one is based on Little House on the Prairie. My yarn fairy wrote up this little story to go with the swap.

It is a Saturday morning in out “Little House on the Prairie” in the height of summer. Pa is out in the fields milling the timber and I have just finished gathering up the vegetables and fruit out of the garden. I take my basket into the kitchen and there is Ma at our kitchen table wearing her apron. I can smell the bread baking in the oven and Ma has the preserving pot all ready and waiting. I place the basket on the table and begin helping to peel the fruit. Every summer about this time, Ma does the preserves and places them in the pantry that Pa built. You should see it. There is orange marmalade, cucumber relish, and bottles of pickled onions. Ma said that after we finished the preserving, we are going across the way to visit the Price family, so I had better go and fetch the cake carrier and Ma’s shawl before Pa arrives with the horse and carriage. Clip, clop, here comes the horses, have to go now.

It contains:

The wool is dyed to reflect the colours of Ma’s preserves in the pantry.

An apron just like Ma’s as a said it is a mothers second skin.

A cake carrier for when I go visiting.

A pattern for a knitted piggy.

A package of 150g bamboo for a shawl.

Recipe for a Banana and Date tea loaf.

Whoa Nelly would be an appropriate exclamation for this one!

The apron is currently being used for my clothes pegs.

And a closer pic of the yarn.

Since I decided to not use the Malabrigo for boy’s pants for winter, I might well use this. It goes with several of his shirts and is just lovely colours for a boy.

Thank you Joanne and Pipi! I love the swaps you’ve put together.

So, what’s the next swap on the list? The Magic Yarn Ball Swap!! But you’ll just have to wait and wonder a bit for that one. 😉